Heaven Of My Heart
by SkyKnight0710
Summary: A car accident took her mother and her dog Duran from Natsuki and left her with a paralysed left arm in a world where no one wants to associate themselves with cripples, in a world where she is all...alone... (Shiznat)
1. Paradise

_**Heaven Of My Heart**_

**A/N: Hello, everyone. My name's Sky Knight and I'm a new author so I apologise if there is too many mistakes. It is my first fanfic. Hope you enjoy it :)**

**Disclaimer: MAI HIME DOES NOT BELONG TO ME NOR DOES THE LYRICS USED IN THIS CHAPTER. **

**Chapter 1: Paradise**

"Mom, Duran! Catch me!" giggled Natsuki.

_She was running as fast as her tiny feet let her. She could hear the panting behind her and knew Duran was chasing her. Laughing, she ran around the yard, going around the trees, the bushes. Getting tired, she turned smiling, seeing Duran jump on her, connecting with her small body and felt herself falling…._

Opening her eyes, she realised she was in her bed, not as a toddler but as an adolescent; just a dream. Running her hand in her hair, she tried to breathe deep and stop the tears amassing in her eyes from falling. No matter how hard she tried, no matter what she did, it would always be a dream as reality was just too different. She still remembered it vividly even if she was still small at that time.

_"__**Mama, where are we going?" asked small Natsuki while hugging her dog, Duran, while sitting in the backseat of the car.**_

**_"We are going to a nice place, Natsuki. We are going to stay in another city" replied Saeko Kuga_**

**_"But Mama, what about my friends?" asked the toddler_**

**_"You can make new friends in Tokyo, Natsuki" It was at that moment, a small distraction that cost Natsuki everything she had. Her mother didn't see the truck coming on the other side and when she did, it was too late. Trying to avoid the collision, she crashed right through the road barrier and the car went tumbling off the cliff into the dark waters of the se, plunging her vision into a sea of darkness. _**

**_When she woke up, all she could see was blue and red light flashing as they carried her on a stretcher to the ambulance and then she lost consciousness again._**

**_When she woke up, she knew she was in a hospital, the white walls indicated that. A nurse came to check on her after a few minutes and was pleased to see that she was awake and went to look for her doctor. It was that horrible night when she learnt that her mother and her Duran were no more…._**

**_It was also that very night where she came to know she can't move her left arm properly…._**

**_And that nightmare never ended._**

Knowing that there was no way she would be able to go back to sleep, she got up and went to take a shower. She has been living most of her life only using her right arm and she got used to it. It took some adjusting. Thank god she was right handed so it had not been a problem for her to continue school as soon she was released from the hospital. Since she was a toddler, she was put in an orphanage because her father had pretty much abandoned her after the accident. Her mother's life insurance and trust fund made sure that she would not lack anything as soon as she turned 18.

Orphanage… That was another part of her life she wasn't fond of. After her accident, she closed onto herself. She couldn't get close to anyone because she was scared of getting hurt and abandoned again as her parents and Duran did to her, in each their different ways. She didn't have any friends. Who would want to be friend with someone disabled? She couldn't climb on the climbers in the kids' playground, couldn't play ball as it was hard to catch with only one hand, couldn't play soccer for it was hard to keep her balance while running which mean that she couldn't even race or play tag. Most of the time, she would get bullied if she approached the playground so she would sit under the big tree that was in the far corner of the playground but still sometimes, when the boys would get bored playing the same games every day, they would come and beat her for fun. She couldn't even eat like a normal person, it took her twice the amount of time to finish her food and in the orphanage, the nuns would just take away her food even if she hadn't finished. At school, she would get scolded for taking too much time to write, it is still hard to write even with your predominant hand. The teachers would never wait for her to finish taking her notes and no one even lent her their notes. She had tried asking a few times but it never worked.

Exams? They never gave her extra time for exams so her grades would always be low. It was only afterwards, when she grew older that she came to know that she was supposed to be given special consideration but it was too late now. The people were mean and she didn't want to go revisit that time of the life.

Now she is in high school, she is into her last year. Fuuka High School is a prestigious academy. If you are asking how she got in when her results are average, well, she got the money from her trust fund and sometimes money can get you anywhere. She got access to her trust fund early for her education. From the start itself, she had already talked to the high school administration to make sure she gets special consideration for her assignments and exams. This time, she made sure everything is done properly, since then she is one of the best students of her class.

Some things never change though. She didn't have any friend and still got bullied. A lot of the students resent her. They say that she is one of the best students because she gets more time to finish her exams, time that she shouldn't have since her right hand is fine. Jerks… did they ever try to write with only one hand while the other was in their pocket or just idle on the table. Did they ever try to make their maths diagrams with only one hand?

Shaking the bad thoughts from her brain, she dried herself and went to get some breakfast. After her breakfast, she went to get dressed for school. A lot of people say that she dressed like a nerd. She never felt the need dress up to look beautiful simply because she was not beautiful…she is not normal, she is disabled. She preferred the "nerd clothes" because they helped her to blend in and sometimes escape bullying.

Today is a very special day. There is a music presentation after school and she had already bought a ticket for it. She didn't know the musicians though but she eavesdropped from her classmates that they were really good. She always had a fondness for music; she specially loved the piano, her mother used to play it. She always sat with her mother whenever she was playing. Her mother would teach her a few chords but now playing seems a distant dream…she couldn't play it…not with her arm paralysed like this. Hell, she takes ages to type something on her laptop; a piano is a lot more difficult.

Grabbing her bag, she locked her doors and walked to the bus stop. It was a sunny day, just perfect for a walk. She was early anyway due to waking up early because of her dream. Winter was her favourite time of the year, even if she was named 'Summer Child'. She didn't mind summer but she never got to enjoy it. She couldn't go to the beach like everybody else because she couldn't swim and the beach is always too crowded at that time of the year, she never felt as ease. She couldn't go anywhere pretty much since most people are outside during summer but winter was different. People stayed inside, the streets, covered in snow, were most of the time desert. She loved to go to the kids' playground just round the corner and sit on the swing…she never could do that in summer. Even at school, during breaks, she would go sit underneath her favourite cherry tree and there would be no one coming to disturb her or bully her as they were all inside enjoying the heaters inside the school walls.

She soon arrived in front of school gates. "Ready for a new day of hell in class, Natsuki?" she asked herself, while walking to her class.

_**After school**_

There were still a few hours before the performance would start and Natsuki was getting a bit hungry. Sitting under the cherry tree, she took out her sandwich she made and started munching. Mayo sandwich, it was one of the things that made her happy. Smiling, she continued munching her food until

SPLAT!

A snowball hit her right in the face, making her drop her sandwich in shock. Looking up, she saw Reito, vice-student council president with his friends, laughing their asses off at her expense . He was the only one she knew in the student council because he always bullied her.

"Kuga Cripple! I read on the music performance attendees list that you bought a ticket? Haha, what would a cripple like you do at a music performance? Huh, you don't understand music, you can't even hold a fork and knife at the same time let alone play an instrument. Well, it seems like before I could buy a ticket for the performance, all of it was sold out and there is absolutely no way I would miss a performance of my Shizuru!" he said growling " so hand me your ticket."

"No way! I bought it." refused Natsuki

"Boys, teach her what it is to say no to me. I got to remove her name and put mine on the attendees list so I leave it to you to get me the ticket" he said to his stooges.

"No problem Reito, we'll teach her well" snickered one guy, watching Reito walk away.

A guy grabbed her hair, forcing her onto her feet while another punched her in her stomach making her fall back down. They kicked her while she was on the ground. She couldn't defend herself but she wouldn't give them the satisfaction of hearing her cry out. Another guy emptied her bag's contents on the snow, looking for the ticket. A kick came right to her face so hard, it rattled her teeth, splitting her lip and making her bleed onto the white snow.

"I've got it boys" the searcher said, waving the ticket which was in his hand "let's go now; I want to get out of this cold." Raining a few more kicks, they left her like that and went back inside.

Coughing out some blood, Natsuki tried her best to sit up, her ribs screaming in protest due to the movements. She managed to lie against the tree, taking deep breaths to suppress her pain, the coldness of the snow seeping into her clothes. She wanted to cry yet she couldn't. It would make her feel weaker, still she couldn't stop a tear from rolling down her cheeks.

"Ara?"

Hearing the voice, she tried to scoot away until she felt a warm hand on her freezing cheek. Turning, she found herself looking into pools of red…red…not as blood, no, that wouldn't describe them…red like the reddest of roses…such beautiful eyes.

"Ara, stranger-san, are you alright? You are bleeding!" asked the velvety voice. The girl had long blonde hair, cascading over her shoulders and framing her beautiful face.

"I…I'm fine…than..k you…" Natsuki stammered, feeling out of place. No one ever asked her how she was. No one.

"It doesn't seem so to me. Let me get you to the infirmary. The nurse is here till late today due to the performance." The blonde girl helped her get up and seeing how she was wincing from pain, gave her support as they marched to the infirmary.

_**In the infirmary**_

"Well girl, nothing is broken but your ribs are bruised so I wrapped them. I would advise you not to do anything to hurt yourself again. Your split lip will heal itself, it is not serious. Here are some painkillers," said the nurse.

"Thank you" Natsuki replied.

"I'll leave you to rest then" said the nurse as she walked out.

"Ara, stranger-san, would you mind telling me how you got hurt?" asked the blonde.

Natsuki had forgotten about the blonde but it seems that she had been waiting for her; she had walked in as soon as the nurse has opened the door.

Seeing the reluctance of the wounded girl to talk about it, the blonde continued "Sorry, I haven't introduced myself. My name is Shizuru Fujino."

"My name is Natsuki Kuga…"

"Will Kuga-san tell me how she got hurt?"

Seeing the girl really wanting to know, she complied "I was waiting for the music performance when some guys came and demanded my ticket. I didn't want to give it away so they beat me and stole it." Looking at her watch, "the performance will start in 15 minutes anyway, there is nothing you can do."

"Ara, that's where Kuga-san is wrong. Does Kuga-san still want to go to the performance in her state?" asked Shizuru.

"Yes, I would have liked that but I don't have a ticket"

"All Kuga-san has to do is come with me" extending her hand for the blunette to take it, she smiled.

No ever smiled at her like that…without knowing, her right hand lifted itself and grasped the blonde's hand.

She was in a daze. That smile has dazzled her as well as confused her. Who was this Shizuru Fujino and why was she smiling at her? Maybe she hasn't realised that she is a cripple yet. Not wanting to think too much about it, she kept walking in the corridors, her hand firmly in Shizuru's. The painkillers had helped and she was not having too much trouble walking. Soon double doors opened and she found herself in the auditorium. Shizuru led her to the front row and sat her in one of the VIP seats.

"My mother couldn't make it since she had to go abroad all of a sudden so I want you to take her place" said Shizuru "It is for the best as this way Kuga-san wouldn't have to sit in the hard plastic chairs and hurt her ribs, neh?"

Shocked, Natsuki could only look as Shizuru smiled at her and walked to the backstage. It took her a few minutes to come back to her senses. Looking around, she felt eyes boring into her back. The ticket she had purchased had been in the back in a corner, somewhere dark where people wouldn't notice her, now here she was, sitting in the first row in a VIP seat. Soon the lights were dimmed which she was thankful of as it took the attention off her and put it to the stage in front where the curtains were being raised.

One hour into the performance and she was really enjoying it. It looked like Shizuru was part of the backstage team maybe as she didn't come out again. She had forgotten all the people around her, even about Reito who surely had seen her in the front row.

"Now presenting the last piece of this music performance; It is a song written, sung and performed by our one and only student council president, Shizuru Fujino!"

Hearing Shizuru Fujino and student council president in the same sentence shocked Natsuki to her core. Eyes wide open, she saw Shizuru enter the stage dressed in a white flowing dress. She looked like an angel. Shizuru looked at Natsuki and giving her a wink, smiled as she walked and sat in front of the white grand piano. The wink was even more shocking to her. The student council president who was loved by everyone just winked at her, the cripple! Now she understood why the name Shizuru Fujino sounded familiar to her. Everybody talked about her.

"I thank you all for coming today. I would like to dedicate my song to a new friend I made today, Natsuki Kuga. It is called "Paradise" said Shizuru as she nodded to the conductor that she was ready. Behind her, a whole group of musician was ready to accompany, violins, cellos, guitars, drums and flutes as well as the choir.

**_When she was just a girl  
She expected the world  
But it flew away from her reach so  
She ran away in her sleep  
And dreamed of  
Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise, Para-para-paradise  
Every time she closed her eyes _**

Natsuki never had a song dedicated to her. She could only look wide-eyed at Shizuru playing the piano, her slender fingers caressing the keys with so much gentleness. The music was so…so…indescribable…and the voice that sung those words to her…broke something in her..

**_When she was just a girl  
She expected the world  
But it flew away from her reach  
And the bullets catch in her teeth  
Life goes on, it gets so heavy  
The wheel breaks the butterfly  
Every tear a waterfall  
In the night the stormy night she'll close her eyes  
In the night the stormy night away she'd fly _**

The music engulfed her, this song, the words…like narrating her reality…she could feel tears roll down her cheeks and she couldn't stop them. Yet, she didn't care who saw her crying. She wasn't going to walk out; she wasn't going to stop listening.

**_And dreams of  
Para-para-paradise  
Para-para-paradise  
Para-para-paradise  
Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh  
She'd dream of  
Para-para-paradise  
Para-para-paradise  
Para-para-paradise  
Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh-oh _**

Shizuru looked like glowing in front of Natsuki. Dressed gorgeously in white, her blonde golden hair scintillating like a halo on her head…like an angel…an angel from…paradise…

**_La-la-la-la-la-la-la  
La-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-la  
And so lying underneath those stormy skies  
She'd say, "oh, ohohohoh I know the sun must set to rise"_**

_**This could be**_  
_**Para-para-paradise**_  
_**Para-para-paradise**_  
_**This could be**_  
_**Para-para-paradise**_  
_**Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh**_  
_**This could be**_  
_**Para-para-paradise**_  
_**Para-para-paradise**_  
_**This could be**_  
_**Para-para-paradise**_  
_**Oh oh oh oh oh oh-oh-oh-oh**_

Finishing, a big round of applause erupted in the auditorium, walking to the front of the stage, Shizuru bowed down. She frowned upon seeing Natsuki crying. She hadn't wanted to make her cry. She decided to walk to the backstage and change her clothes to go ask her new friend why was she crying but as soon as she got into the backstage, she was assaulted by congratulations from the other musicians. By the time she reached the front rows, Natsuki was gone and the fans were congratulating her, it was a mob, there was no way she would be able to go look for Natsuki. That made her sad but she kept her mask on her face and cheered herself inside saying that she would meet Natsuki tomorrow.


	2. Heaven On Earth

**A/N: I would like to thank everyone that reviewed, made the story their favourite already as well as started to follow the story. I hope I meet your expectations. I'm new at all this. Please, don't mind the mistakes :P**

**I immensely loved to see all those positive reviews for this story and there is even one reviewer than mentioned one idea of mine ;)** **Please review some more! It gives me strength to write and also makes my day so much better (going through a rough patch right now)**

**Love**

**Sky Knight **

**Chapter 2: Heaven on Earth**

Today, Shizuru Fujino was excited to go to school for the first time. You might be asking why the first time, I mean she is beautiful, well known, has a lot of fans, she is in the student council, you would expect school to be exciting everyday right? Well, wrong. She didn't want to be popular. The popularity had stuck to her as soon as she walked into that school for the first time and it kept on increasing everyday she stayed in the student council and the music club. It's like being a flame that attracts all kinds of moths. Yeah, moths. Those students around here were not her friends, just fans, content with being in her vicinity but never being her friend. It was because of them that she learnt how to put on a mask every time. Constant smile most of the time and poker face in other situations and people would never know what's going on in her head and heart. Yesterday though was different. It was the first time she had ever encountered Natsuki Kuga. The way the girl looked at her, it was different. No one had ever looked at her with fear, though it was understandable. The girl had just been assaulted so anyone close to her would scare her but it was something else that made her find Natsuki different. It was the sadness and helplessness buried into the emerald orbs that had looked at her own ruby ones with awe.

There was also the fact that Natsuki cried during her song. She had thought that the song would cheer the girl up, make her feel better but instead she cried. She wanted so badly to know why Natsuki cried and then ran away afterwards. Her curiosity was nagging her every minutes, making up different crazy possible explanations in her head but she knew it wouldn't be right to ask Natsuki for the reason so soon. She was sure though that she could get the girl to open up to her if she befriended her.

Hurrying to school, she couldn't contain her excitement. For the first time, there was a glow in her eyes but no one really noticed.

**10 mins to Lunch Time**

Shizuru sighed. She had been looking for Natsuki during the first break, even checking out the place where she found her bleeding yesterday but no such luck. Excusing herself out of her class with permission from the teacher (perks of being Student Council President, aka Kaichou), she walked to the Student Council Office. Another perk about being Kaichou was that she had access to the records and attendance of all the students. She didn't want to go through Natsuki's records, it didn't feel right. All she wanted to do was check if Natsuki came to school today.

'_Maybe her ribs hurt too much and she decided to stay home_. 'Thought Shizuru.

A few clicks on the laptop in front of her, typing out 'Natsuki Kuga', waiting for the computer to search for the class she was in, a few more clicks and voila! Damn, Natsuki was indeed absent. Realising she wouldn't see Natsuki today, she felt depressed. A few more clicks, she had the timetable of the young girl which she printed out. Folding it, she put it in her purse. She was going to exit the Student Council Office when the door opened and Reito appeared before her.

"Ara, what is Kanzaki-san doing here?" she asked.

"Classes are already over Shizuru, it is already lunch break. I came to look for you." Explained Reito.

"Can I ask why is Kanzaki-san looking for me?"

"To take you to have lunch with me, of course and please Shizuru, how many times do I have to tell you, call me Reito" he said, smiling his toothpaste smile.

"Ara, Kanzaki-san, I must apologise but I can't call you by your name and I would prefer if you do the same for me."

"Come on, Shizuru" approaching her till he backed her against the desk "it's time you stop playing hard to get. Be my girlfriend, we would make a great pair" he said, leaning to kiss her on the lips.

Pushing him away, Shizuru replied as politely as she could but inside she was annoyed "I'm sorry but I must decline." She said as she walked out of the office.

"One day, you'll be mine, Shizuru and you won't be able to do anything about it" he growled angrily in the empty room.

And for the rest of the day, Shizuru avoided Reito like the plague which pissed him off more than ever. No one avoided Reito Kanzaki, NO ONE!

**Next Day**

Today, Shizuru wasn't as excited as yesterday to go to school. What if Natsuki was absent today as well? Was she hurting a lot? Who was taking care of her? Shizuru couldn't help feeling worried after she had seen the sadness and pain in the green eyes of the blunette. She didn't want to get too excited to see Natsuki, only to have her hopes dashed as soon as she reached school. She even lagged behind when dressing up thus ending up reaching school right before classes started. Fortunately! It wouldn't look good if the Kaichou was late. Haruka Suzushiro, who was the Discipline Committee Captain, would never let her live it down. That girl would have hunted her down and screamed about discipline to her like a banshee and she was so not in a mood for that.

Hours passed and Shizuru was feeling more depressed than ever. She hadn't been able to go look for Natsuki during the first break as some teachers needed her, giving her work and asking for favours. Sometimes being Kaichou sucked big time. She hadn't even been able to go check if the girl was even present and right now she was waiting for the bell to ring to announce lunch break so she could do so.

RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNN NNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!

She dashed out of the class before any student or teacher could ask her for any favour. Let me tell you, no one had ever seen Shizuru go that fast EVER! Of course she wasn't running, that wouldn't be graceful. She is a Fujino, that pretty much explains everything. So she was going as fast as the definition 'graceful' allowed. Huh? You didn't know?! Yes, they do have speeding limits. Check out the book "Fujino Grace", chapter 17 "Speed Etiquette".

Soon she arrived in her office. Booting the laptop on her desk and putting in her login and password, she waited for the sign-in to the school systems.

_'Come on! Faster! Wasn't this supposed to be latest technology?!'_

As soon as the page was opened, she clicked on Class IV and scrolled to the 'K' part…

_'Kuga…Kuga…come on'_

Finding Kuga Natsuki, she saw "present" in the column for today. A smile came to her lips, so wide, it could have split her cheeks. _Natsuki is here! _Internally, she could see herself doing a dance. She rushed out of the office to go look for Natsuki.

No luck at all. Lunch break was nearly over and she still hadn't found Natsuki, not even underneath the cherry tree she had found her under, the other day. She had been stopped so many times by her fans, who first surrounded her, blocking her path and then started to follow her. She didn't even get time to eat. Depressed, Shizuru walked back to her next classes. She wasn't going to give up though; she was not one to accept defeat so easily.

Hours later, she already had a new plan. There was only 30 minutes till the end of school. Excusing herself out of class again, Shizuru checked out the paper where she had written Natsuki's timetable.

_Hmm, Physics class. Room 137. Gotcha Natsuki! _Grinned Shizuru while walking to the science wing.

Stopping right in front of Room 137, she knocked and was soon allowed entrance by the teacher inside.

"Miss Fujino, what is the purpose of your visit?" asked the Physics teacher.

"I apologise for the interruption of your class, Sensei but Natsuki Kuga is needed in the Student Council Room" replied Shizuru.

Natsuki was…well dozing on her table. Her ribs had hurt her all night, just like yesterday and she wasn't going to take the risk of taking more painkillers than prescribed thus she had trouble sleeping. Hearing her name, she jerked up and was shocked to see Shizuru there, even more shocked that she was being called to the Student Council Office by the Kaichou herself!

_'What did I do? I was just sleeping, it's not that bad!' _Panicked Natsuki _'is it about yesterday? Did she realise who I am? …. Reito! He must have told her to bring me to the Student Council Office to bully me again!'_

She was so panicking inside that she didn't realise that the teacher had given permission to Shizuru to take her and that she was being led through the corridors by the said girl. She only snapped out of her panic trance when she heard a door close behind her and realised she was in the Student Council Office already. Looking around, she also realised that Reito was nowhere to be found.

_Maybe he will come afterwards…Maybe Fujino-san wants to have a go at me first… _the thought sent a blast of sadness through her heart and it flashed in her eyes it seems as Shizuru looked at her weirdly.

Ara, may I ask why is Natsuki so silent?" asked Shizuru.

"Ano…why did you bring me here?"

"I wanted to know how Natsuki is doing. Natsuki didn't come to school yesterday and I was worried"

"Huh? I'm… fine… How did you know I didn't come to school yesterday?" asked Natsuki suspiciously.

"I had been looking for Natsuki yesterday and I searched for Natsuki today as well" confessed Shizuru surprising Natsuki so much, her eyes went wide.

"Looking for..m..me? But why?"

"Ara, I didn't get to say goodbye to Natsuki after the music performance. Did she hate my performance so much that she ran away?" covering her face with her hands, Shizuru sobbed.

Hearing the sobbing sent Natsuki into another wave of panic "No! No! I loved it, it was… beautiful" said Natsuki, the last word whispered so low, Shizuru almost didn't hear it.

Seeing Shizuru smiling brightly with no trace of tears on her face, Natsuki felt herself relax… '_wait a minute, did I just get tricked?!'_

"Ara, I am so happy that Natsuki loved my performance so much! But why didn't Natsuki stay to congratulate me?" asked Shizuru sadly.

"I didn't want to bother you. I loved your music, I loved your voice, I loved everything, and you are brilliant on that piano. I'm sorry if I offended you by disappearing. I didn't mean to…" replied Natsuki sincerely, blushing furiously. She was not used to complimenting people like that.

Moved beyond words, Shizuru smiled tenderly at the girl. No one had congratulated her for her music yesterday. All they said was that she was amazing, so beautiful and that they had amassed so much fund from the amount of people that came for her concert but that wasn't what she was projecting up there on the stage. She was delivering her music and only Natsuki had complimented her music, her voice.

"Natsuki will have to make it up to me then!" said Shizuru, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Wait..w..what?!" exclaimed Natsuki.

"I will forgive Natsuki if she agrees to spend every lunch break with me." It was a great deal and Shizuru knew it. Haha, she was brilliant!

"You…you want to spend lunch break…with…me?" whispered Natsuki, the concept itself baffling her. Why would someone want to spend lunch break with her, a cripple. Is that a joke? Was Shizuru making fun of her. Was Reito going to pop out from behind a table, laughing his ass off?

"Is this a joke?" she asked, anger filling up her head "Are you making fun of me?"

The tone in Natsuki's voice took Shizuru by surprise '_why is she angry? Maybe she doesn't like me' _the thought made Shizuru sad.

"Is this so that you can make fun of the way I can't eat normally or do my stuff normally because my whole left arm is paralysed?!" shouted Natsuki, tears trailing down her cheeks. Having Shizuru make fun of her was so painful. She was the first person that ever helped her, Natsuki had thought that she was different but it seems she was wrong.

The shock that her words brought Shizuru was clearly shown in her face. That itself deflated all her anger and Natsuki realised that Shizuru hadn't known… '_She didn't know…oh my god, she didn't know'_

"Nat…Natsuki?" choked Shizuru. Having heard what Natsuki said and seeing the tears streaming down pale cheeks had shocked her and sent a flash of searing pain to her heart. The pain reflected in the emerald orbs broke her heart. She hadn't known…

Natsuki, having realised that Shizuru hadn't known anything about her paralysed arm, felt the walls closing down on her. She was hyperventilating…. She felt suffocated and needed to get out. Turning and grasping the doorknob with her trembling hand, she flung the door open and ran as fast as she could…leaving a trail of sparking tears behind…

Shizuru, having realised that Natsuki had just fled from her recovered from her shock and took after the blunette, this time running for real, forgetting about grace and anything else. She had to find Natsuki. She looked everywhere for the girl, every second that she couldn't find her made her heart constrict and feel heavier. She was near tears herself, she had to find Natsuki. Having already gone through the empty school as classes were over, she ran outside in the cold. The chill in the air made her realise that she left her coat in her office but that wasn't important right now. Snow was falling from the sky, covering the ground and trees with a thicker coat of white. She ran through the slow descent of the snowflakes to the garden. Arriving at the cherry tree where she had found Natsuki the evening of the music performance, she heard sobbing and knew that the girl was behind the tree. Rounding the tree, the scene in front of her broke her restraint and she felt tears making their descent on her cheeks.

Natsuki was huddled behind the tree, her knees close to her chest, her left hand being held over her heart by her right hand as if trying to stop the pain from flowing out of the beating organ. A thin layer of snow was on her blue hair. T ears were flowing endlessly from her closed eyes, rolling down her pale cheeks and whimpers coming out of her lips. She looked so broken. An answering whimper came out of Shizuru's throat unknowingly. Hearing the sound, Natsuki looked up and found herself engulfed in the warmth of Shizuru's arms. The blonde hadn't been able to bear seeing Natsuki like that, she held the blunette as gently yet as tightly as possible.

Not knowing the reason of Shizuru's tears, Natsuki didn't know how to ask. This girl was crying and was holding her…why?

"Shi…Shizuru…?" she choked…her voice betraying her…

Shizuru stayed silent for a few seconds. "You said my name…" whispered Shizuru tenderly in crying girl's ear. Natsuki, having not realised that, rushed to apologise only to be hushed by the next words of the blonde.

"Say it again… I like the way my name sounds coming from Natsuki's lips. My Natsuki…I don't care if Natsuki's left arm is paralysed. I didn't know... I still want to be a friend to my Natsuki…" finished Shizuru in her whisper.

"Your…Your Natsuki?" asked Natsuki, tears in her eyes yet the orbs had a little bit of hope in them.

"Ara yes! My Natsuki. Natsuki is my friend, neh? So she is my Natsuki" explained Shizuru as cheerfully as she could with her own tears falling, while wiping the tears off Natsuki's face. Shizuru reached for Natsuki's left hand and entwined her fingers together with the limp hand "I'm always here for my Natsuki."

She had explained that as if it was so simple. Maybe it was but to Natsuki, it was anything but simple. She never had someone call her "Natsuki" for a long time, let alone hear "my Natsuki". She felt an intense wave of happiness flow into her chest, her heart ready to burst from the immense joy. It was as if Shizuru had just revealed the secret of the universe to her, it was as if Shizuru had poured life into her being, she had never felt so ALIVE! And the gesture of Shizuru holding her limp hand, oh god, she couldn't describe what she was feeling. She had never let anyone touch that arm, let alone hold that hand. Her own right hand shot out to wrap itself around the blonde and she held as if Shizuru was her raft in this storm. She felt like if she let go, she would drown. She now belonged to someone's life. Someone wanted to be her friend and that someone was the angel right in front of her, holding her so securely and wiping her tears so tenderly… Her own heaven on earth…Shizuru…

After wiping their tears and smoothing out their clothes, the two girls went back inside the school to get their bags and items.

"Where does Natsuki live?" asked Shizuru.

Natsuki was still in shock, everything happened so fast and now she had a friend. This friend was still holding her limp hand. She could feel the warmth of the blonde's hand. Her arm still had some of its feeling capability yet she couldn't move it no matter how much she had tried before and no one wanted to associate themselves with her because of that arm, because she was a cripple and yet, here was Shizuru holding the said hand as if it was the most natural thing to do.

"Natsuki? Are you ok?" asked Shizuru, not understanding the blunette's silence.

"Ah.. yes, I'm ok. I live on 10 Street, Shizuru" replied Natsuki. Saying Shizuru's name felt so right yet she felt shy saying it.

"Oh, I live just 2 streets before that one! Would Natsuki like to walk home with me?"

"S…sure.."

The two girls walked hand in hand, Shizuru never letting go of Natsuki's limp hand. They were walking in silence yet that didn't bother them. Shizuru felt happy and at peace, she had her first real friend. Checking on Natsuki, she saw that the girl was being shy about holding hands, she had a red tint on her cheeks. _'Cute' _yet the blunette had a faint smile on her lips, trying to hide it but failing.

Reaching Shizuru's street, they let go of each other hands, "Ara, I wish Natsuki stayed closer. Does Natsuki want me to accompany her home?"

"No!" not being ready for that, Natsuki panicked. She didn't want Shizuru to see where she lived so she looked for an excuse "there is no need, you are already at your street and I will reach home soon. You would have to walk back here alone again if you dropped me."

"Ara, Natsuki is worried about me walking on the streets alone? Natsuki is so kind and gentlemanly. Then I'll see you tomorrow at school for lunch, right?"

"Y...Yes" stuttered Natsuki shyly, not used to compliments.

"Goodbye Natsuki, see you tomorrow!" wished Shizuru as she came closer and planted a small kiss on the blunette's cheek, making her face turn into all shades of red. Giggling, Shizuru waved and turned into her street to go home leaving a stunned Natsuki, all red, mouth agape, her right hand touching her cheek, not really believing that Shizuru had just kissed her, her…the cripple.

No one had ever kissed her since her mother died…and yet, her heaven on earth just did….

**NOTE: A reviewer mentioned this so I better clear any misunderstanding. I changed a few words based on that. Natsuki's whole left arm is paralysed. Sorry if that got you confused. I'm changing a few "hand" to "arm"**

**I hope you liked this chapter. No, they are not a couple...yet :P Heaven can be a friend as well, specially for someone who didn't have anyone for so long.**

**Please review, it would make me happy :) thank you everyone.**


	3. Healing Hands

**A/N: Hello everyone! Sorry for the wait but I have been very busy. I am still busy. I have exams coming up and I do four units of different types of maths! D: Calculations, formulas, you name it, it's there! I already have less hair on my head! Plus, it is getting cold here in Melbourne! I'm An islander, so I can't even stand temperature below 18 degrees :P Anyway, let's discuss some changes I've made here. I changed the rating from M to T(based on the violence). Why? Because the M part is far away so it would be best to let other non-M readers have a go at my writing. I also wrote a totally different chapter of what I had in mind months ago. I wrote this all today. My muse hit me suddenly. I apologise for any stupid mistake that I have done in this chapter. I have been writing non-stop for hours and I do not have the strength to go read it all. So if you find mistakes, don't write them in reviews XP PM me, it's better that way! Enjoy my friends and don't forget to review! ~ Sky Knight**

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**Chapter 3: Healing Hands**

That night, Natsuki couldn't sleep at all. It wasn't because of the springs of her old mattress digging into her back nor was it the cold that permeated in the room. She didn't have a heater, getting a good one would cost too much and then her electricity bill would go to the roof. She had enough financial trouble as it is. She wore enough clothes to ward off most of the cold anyway. What she was feeling right now was just chilly and it was a bit uncomfortable because of her still healing injuries. Cold weather and springy mattress did not help at all but that was not what was stopping her from sleeping.

It was totally another matter. She had never broken down like that before and she was so embarrassed about it. On top of it, she did it in front of Shizuru! How embarrassing! She berated herself for losing her cool that way. She had always been able to hide her feelings in any situation, even when being bullied and beaten, she had never shed any tear but she seemed to lose all her walls in front of Shizuru. She had cried that day at the music performance. Thank god, she had managed to run away before someone could notice her! Even if Shizuru had looked at her from the stage, she couldn't have seen the tears in the darkness, right? Now she'll meet the brunette tomorrow for lunch….

Damn, she was too embarrassed to want to show her face to Shizuru but she wouldn't be able to miss it. She really wanted to have lunch with Shizuru and if she missed it, on top of being sad, she would hurt Shizuru's feelings. She couldn't do that after Shizuru went through all the trouble of taking her to the infirmary, giving her a VIP seat at the music performance, comforting her and inviting her for lunch!

Rolling on her bed, she tried to get her thoughts to better places…uhmm, like lunch with Shizuru! Oh, she was so excited for that! Her first lunch with a friend!

_'What would it be like? Wait! Lunch?! That means I have to bring something to eat! Do I buy something from the department store on the way to school or do I make something… Hmm, only thing I know how to make is mayo sandwich… Buying something would be waste of money and it doesn't even taste good…but mayo…oh my mayo…cheap and delicious! I've decided! I'm making mayo sandwiches!'_

Checking the clock, Natsuki saw that it was 4 a.m. '_Only a few hours till the time to get ready for school, might as well start making those sandwiches now since I can't sleep' _she thought. Getting up from her bed, she walked to her small corner kitchen, it wasn't much but she didn't cook much anyway. Opening her fridge, she took her extra-large mayo bottle, cheese, cold-cut chicken, wrinkled lettuce leaves and took some bread from the cupboard and started working on her lunch. Hours later, she finished her sandwiches and put them in her lunch box. It had taken that long to make 4 sandwiches because she had eaten 5 of them already, at a leisurely and degustation pace, while making them.

Looking at the clock, she saw that it was 7:30 am. _'Damn! Damn! I'm going to be late!' _Hurrying into the bathroom, she brushed her teeth and took a shower as fast as she could. Jumping into her uniform while brushing her hair, she checked her appearance in her half-mirror as best as she could. _'Since when do I check how I look?! Let's GO!' _She chided herself and stuffed her lunch box and bottle of water in her bag and ran for the door.

Shizuru, on her side, had the same problem as Natsuki. She was too worried and excited to be sleepy. Having lunch with Natsuki was something she wanted and she was excited about it but the feeling that was stopping the most from sleeping was worry. She had learnt a lot that day… She hadn't known anything at all about Natsuki. After learning this much today, she was tempted to go see the student profiles in the school administration network tomorrow but she dismissed that thought. It would be bad to do so. She wanted to get to know Natsuki by herself and know her for real, not through some pieces of paper. While she would know more about the blunette, she was sure that Natsuki was not ready to reveal some parts of her life and she was determined to know about those parts only when Natsuki was ready to talk about it.

Lost in her thoughts, she couldn't count the amount of tea she had ingested. There were boxes of different types of tea on the coffee table in front of her. Glancing at the clock, it was just 2 a.m. _'Natsuki must be peacefully sleeping right now. I better try to sleep as well'_ Going to her room, she got underneath her covers. It took some time but she finally managed to fall asleep.

(Z.Z)

Arriving at school, Natsuki kept on running to her class. The bell had already rung, she had heard it when she was rounding the corner to get to the front gate. She reached her class and tried to get in as calmly as she could. Seeing that the homeroom teacher was not there yet, she breathed in, in relief. Everybody was staring at her. Usually the students are more interested in taking to their friends around them and do not pay attention to her all in the morning but today she felt all their gazes on her. '_Why are they looking at me like that?... Oh DAMN! It must because I was called to the student council office yesterday! Damn, that attracted to much attention to me. Obviously! Shizuru herself came to get me… How am I going to explain this?" _She quietly walked to her seat, trying to avoid questions that might erupt at any moment. Fortunately, she was saved by the entrance of the homeroom teacher into the class.

'_I will have to get out fast at lunch time or I will not arrive on time to have lunch with Shizuru, they will block me and ask too many questions' _

(~.~)

When the lunch bell rang, Natsuki felt she had been waiting for it for a millennium already. She ran out of the classroom before anyone could corner her. Thank god, Shizuru hadn't asked her to come to the student council office by announcing it through the PA system or some students would have tried to corner her in the hallways as well. Though, she felt that the song dedication at the music performance was bad enough so she went through the less frequented hallways to reach her destination.

She reached her destination soon enough and plopped herself on the hard floor under the cherry tree. It had stopped snowing last night and the sky was clear today so there was no snow on the floor. The sun had already melted that of yesterday. Thank god, the patch she was on was dry and not soaked as the other parts of the grounds. Soon she heard light footsteps coming in her direction. Looking up, she saw Shizuru walking towards her, a smile forming on the beautiful face as their gaze met.

"Hello Natsuki"

"Hello Fujino-san" Natsuki greeted

"Ah ah ah, I told you to call me Shizuru, remember? No surname, no san" Shizuru replied

"S..Sorry..Shizuru"

"Ara, Natsuki is sooo cute when she blushes! Let's eat, neh?"

They both opened their bento boxes, Natsuki suddenly realising that eating Mayo sandwiches with one hand could be really messy. She had a cloth, she always kept in her bag that she would tuck in her collar but that just meant that she wouldn't dirty her uniform, the process of eating was still messy. Well, she had no choice, did she?

Tucking her cloth in her collar, she tried to be extra careful in eating so that she wouldn't embarrass herself but in the end, it didn't work, she had put so much of mayo in the sandwiches that it was dripping, as usual. Embarrassed, she looked up at Shizuru. Shizuru on the other end, was intently studying the blunette. Other than the fact that she was eating a disgusting white substance, every bite put a smile on her face and it was admirable how she was eating with only one hand. Seeing Natsuki turn red, wipe her mouth, put the remainder of her sandwich back in her lunch box and putting the cloth and box back in her bag, she asked:

"Ara, why did Natsuki stop eating?"

"Uhmm… I'm not hungry anymore" said Natsuki. _'I must have looked like a pig! Mayo dripping on my chin and my cloth'_ she was just too embarrassed.

"No good. Natsuki must eat if she wants to be healthy. What if you faint in the hallway? You could hurt yourself and you need the nutrients for your bruises to heal properly. Do you not like your lunch?" she questioned.

Seeing Natsuki nod, she realised what was happening. There was no way Natsuki was not enjoying her lunch! She was smiling in delight at every bite. Being her usual perceptive self, she understood that Natsuki was embarrassed at her dripping food and way of eating. She couldn't let Natsuki go with a not-filled stomach now, could she?

"Ara, then I will share my lunch with Natsuki" she decided, sliding closer to the blunette.

"WWW..What?!"

Taking one of the bite size, pieces of food from her bento box with her chopstick, she lifted it up to Natsuki's mouth.

"Say ahhh"

"N..No way!"

Putting on a sad face, with fake crocodile tears, Shizuru asked "You…you don't want to eat with me..? *Sniff, sniff*"

Panicking, Natsuki waved her arms like a puppy trying to fly "No, that's not it! I'll eat it, don't cry, please..."

Seeing Natsuki defeated, looking like a puppy with flopped ears, Shizuru restrained herself from pulling her cheeks and guided the chopstick back to her mouth "Say ahhh"

"…. a..ahhh.." Shizuru had never seen someone go so red! _'Kawaii!'_

Putting the food, she watched the blunette munch on the food, her face changing from embarrassed to that of ecstasy.

"Hmmm, this is so good!" exclaimed Natsuki with shiny eyes.

"Is it? I made it myself"

"You did? It is delicious! Can…can I have some more?" Natsuki asked shyly.

"Ara! Natsuki is so cute! Of course, you can have more! Here, say ahh"

And that's how Shizuru spent her lunch sharing food with Natsuki, feeding herself as well as the hungry puppy.

When the bell rang to signal the end of lunch, the two girls went back to their classes after Shizuru made Natsuki promise to meet her after school to go back home together. Waiting for the last minute to enter her class, Natsuki managed to avoid the questions of her classmate but she could still feel their gazes on her back as she walked to her seat at the very back of the class.

Class was no different than another day but Natsuki was feeling very uncomfortable with the glaces that some boys were giving her from a few rows in front. She easily recognised them as some of the stooges of Kanzaki. _'What if they informed Reito that Shizuru came to get me? Yesterday, I had managed to avoid confrontation over the fact that Shizuru publicly dedicated a song to me at the music performance and also called me a friend. I was hoping if I avoided them enough, they would forget about it but Shizuru's appearance in class may have dashed that'_

She spent so much time thinking about it that she didn't notice that the bell had rung, signalling the end of school. She hadn't even paid attention to what the teacher was explaining during the last hours. Packing up her unused stuffs, she walked fast to get out of the building. As she was rounding out the last corner in the hallway to the front door, she stopped in her tracks. Right in front of her was Reito Kanzaki, along with two of his friends, blocking the front door. Her mind told her to turn and run away. As she was backing up, her back hit something solid. She turned and saw there were two other boys blocking that path as well. The guy she had backed into pushed her closer to Reito.

"Where do you think you are going?" asked Reito

"…Home" replied Natsuki.

The slap that came next rattled her teeth and snapped her head back so hard, she fell to the ground.

"Don't act smart with me, Kuga! Tell me why the hell did Shizuru dedicate a song to you that night?! What the fuck were you doing there anyway?! I thought I took your crappy ticket! YOUR FUCKING SEAT WAS SO BACKWARD, I COULDN'T SEE SHIZURU LIKE I WANTED! he raged, grabbing Natsuki by her collar and shaking her like a ragdoll.

"Don't think for a minute that I didn't see you come in with her!" he raised his hand and kept on slapping her face right and left, splitting her lip "Why were you with her?! I thought you were lying, dying after my boys beat you up! But no, there you were, accompanied by MY WOMAN AND SITTING IN A VIP SEAT WHILE I WAS SITTING SO FAR BACK! And why the fuck did she come get you in your class yesterday?! I know it is not due to student council matters because in case you had forgotten, I am in the student council as well!"

The loud shouts and relentless shaking and slaps were making Natsuki's ears ring. She was starting to feel dizzy and could feel her face start to swell. She was feeling nauseated but wouldn't allow herself the humiliation of vomiting right now, though puking all over Reito sounded like a good idea.

Reito was growing more enraged and violent with the silence of Natsuki. He wanted answers to his questions and he wanted them now!

"Reito! Reito!" called one of his stooges, running to him.

"WHAT?!" He roared "Can't you see I'm fucking busy here!"

"Fujino is coming this way! We gotta bounce!" he hurriedly explained.

Reito threw Natsuki like she was the most disgusting thing he ever touched. "Go!" he rounded up his boys "Drag her to the ladies bathroom and throw her in, fast!"

The boys executed his orders quickly and soon, they were all gone, leaving the school premises. The cold hard floor felt good to Natsuki's burning cheeks. She had been roughly dragged to here and was trying to muster her strength to get up but each time she would raise her head, her vision would start swimming and she would feel dizzy.

"Ah Shizuru, you are still here? Were you by any chance waiting for me, baby?" asked Reito as he walked to Shizuru who had just entered the school.

"Ara, Kanzaki-san, I told you to call me Fujino and nothing else. As for waiting for you, you are mistaken, I didn't even know you were still here" replied Shizuru coolly.

"Well, now you know. How about we go out? There is still some time for the sun to set so we can go on a date." He replied, grabbing her arm and trying to pull her to the exit.

Not budging even by a millimetre, Shizuru said "Kanzaki-san, I am not going anywhere but home. I would suggest you leave my arm. I have to go find a friend of mine."

Not letting go, Reito replied "Then let me escort you home. A pretty lady like you shouldn't walk back home alone."

"I told you I am going back home with a friend, Kanzaki-san and I give you one last chance to let go of my arm"

"Oh come on Shizuru, your friend is not here, let's go" said Reito, turning while trying to drag Shizuru to the front door. Seeing that he wasn't moving her at all, he applied more force into his pulling but to avail. Suddenly, his vision swirled and turned upside down. He found himself with his back to the floor, gasping. His back had hit the hard floor so hard, his breath had left him.

"Sorry for this Kanzaki-san but you left me no choice. I told you to let go of my arm. I would advise you to go back home if you don't want a repeat of what just happened. Goodbye" Shizuru bowed. She suddenly saw spots of red a little further from where Reito was laying. Even further, there were some more that looked like they had been stepped into or something was dragged into them. She wouldn't have noticed them if she hadn't bowed. Deciding to investigate about it when Reito is gone, she straightened herself and went deeper into the school.

Not knowing what had just happened, Reito cursed his luck. Going after Shizuru right now would not be good, it would make matters worse and make it hard for him to win her. Thinking a strategic retreat would be best, he got up, dusted himself, looking around to make sure that none of his boys had seen him getting flipped by a mere woman. It would have been a huge humiliation and bad for his reputation. Thank god, he realised that no one saw it. He might not have gone through a public humiliation but he wouldn't forget that blow to his ego soon.

Shizuru walked to Natsuki's class. She had been waiting for the blunette in front of the grounds gate but after 30 minutes, she decided to check inside the school. She was trying not to think that Natsuki had gone home already. _'She promised, she promised she would meet me after school. I have to believe in her. She doesn't look like someone to break a promise'_

She found Natsuki's last class without problem based on the printout she had. Looking inside, she sighed. Natsuki wasn't inside. The whole place was desert. _'Where could she be? I have to believe that she didn't leave already. What if she stayed back to talk to a teacher or something? Or she had to go to the restroom?'_ Seeing that there was no teacher around the place and the fact that when she was outside waiting for the Natsuki, she had seen the teacher parking empty after the 30 mins, she decided to check out the restrooms around.

After going into 2 restrooms with no luck, Shizuru's hopes were dwindling. She was about to forgo checking the last restroom as she passed right in front of it until she heard a sound inside. Stopping in her tracks, she turned the doorknob and opened the door. There, on the floor, lay Natsuki, her blue hair splayed on the white tile floor.

"NATSUKI!" Running to her friend, she crouched down and turned the girl to face her. What she saw made her heart hurt. The blunette had the lower lip split and was bleeding onto the floor. Her usual pale creamy white cheeks were read and swollen. She stroked the hurt cheeks softly, tracing the finger marks that were showing on them. She couldn't understand how someone could do this to such a sweet girl.

"Sh…Shizuru?" called out Natsuki, blinking to clear her vision. There was no mistaking the mass of blonde hair and ruby eyes in front of her "I'm sorry… I was supposed to meet you at the gate…"

"Baka! Why are you worried about that?! Let me take care of you." Shizuru scolded Natsuki. She helped her off the floor and lifted her to sit on the sink counter. Removing her handkerchief from her pocket, she run water onto it and wiped the bleeding lip of Natsuki and the blood on her chin.

"How did you get hurt?"

"Umm, I slipped and collided with the floor." Said Natsuki, fidgeting.

Shizuru eyes widened at the obvious lie. The floor wouldn't leave prints of a hand of her cheeks and how do you even hurt yourself on both cheeks when you fall down?

Deciding to leave it be for the time being and concentrate on the wounded girl in front of her, she asked "Are you feeling ok? Can you walk?"

"Yes, I feel better now… I was feeling a little bit dizzy before."

"Ok, then come with me." Gently picking up Natsuki and depositing her on the floor which elicited a blush on the already red cheeks, making them redder, she grasped the blunette's hand and let her to the nurse office.

"Why are we going there?" asked Natsuki

"We are going to get some ice-bags for the swelling of your cheeks and some balm for your lips" replied Shizuru. She could have gotten the items while asking Natsuki to wait in the restroom but she didn't want to get her out of her sight. Who knows if she felt dizzy again or if the person that hurt her came to finish the job?

Sitting Natsuki on one of the beds in the infirmary, Shizuru went to get the ice-bags and the balm.

"Here" she said, holding out ice-bags "take them in your hands and press them on each of your cheeks." Natsuki reached out for her limp left arm and stuffed the hand in her pocket before reaching for the bags and complied without any complain. The coldness of the ice bags felt good on her overheated cheeks. Shizuru pulled a chair in front of Natsuki and sat down.

"Come closer. I want to have a better look at your lips" said Shizuru.

"Ok…Wait, what?!" exclaimed Natsuki. It seems that her brain was not functioning properly after all those slaps.

Amused, Shizuru reworded her request, "Lean closer, I want to have a better look at your split lip"

"Oh…" Natsuki realised and blushed furiously.

If the blunette wasn't in such a bad state, Shizuru would have found the response funny but it was not the time for that.

When Natsuki leaned forward, with one hand pressing an ice-bag to her cheek and the other hand in her pocket, some of her blue hair flowed effortlessly and ended up in front of her. Seeing that both hands of Natsuki was somewhat occupied, Shizuru leaned forward and brushed the loose bang back behind the pale cute ear in front of her. The action stirred something deep inside of her. She didn't know what it was. Maybe she was just amazed at how soft the blue hair was. Yep, that must be it. Shaking herself out of her daze, she grasped Natsuki's chin in her hand and pulled her closer. The girl blushed like crazy, it was just too cute. Reaching for the tube of balm, Shizuru squeezed some on her finger and proceeded on rubbing it softly on the cut pink lip in front of her. She could feel the warm breath of Natsuki on her face and was finding it hard to concentrate on what she was doing not to mention the feel of the soft lips on her finger was not helping at all. Nope, not helping at all. She glanced up to see if Natsuki was noticing her weird behaviour and found herself staring at twin whirlpools of warm green that were as if calling out to her, trying to pulling her in.

Natsuki's breath hitched when she felt the warm finger press onto her lip. The balm stung a little but she was too pre-occupied with the feel of Shizuru's finger on her lips and her breath on her face to realise it. The scent of lavender that filled her nostrils made her feel light-headed. She tried to control her breathing even if she just wanted to breathe the scent deeply. When she opened her eyes, she found herself staring in crimson red and her breathing stopped altogether.

( *.)(.* )

**BWAHAHAHA! Did I mention that I ABSOLUTELY HATE cliff-hangers? I'm sure you share that feeling with me yet I couldn't resist leaving you with one XD Review to express your frustration!**

**\(^.^)/**

**Sky Knight**

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**I decided to reply to reviews as best as I could. I would like to thank everyone for their reviews. I'm replying only to certain reviews based on their contents and questions**

** Romanica:**

Mistakes D: WHERE?! Lol! PM me when you find mistakes :) Thank you for being patient with me. I know the updates are slow. It is because of university (-.-)

About your other review, it may seem that Shizuru and Natsuki are weak but it is all based on your definition of strength. For me, someone who is disabled and went through orphanage, bullying and so much more and still be standing displays more strength than anything else. Shizuru, being able to help and be gentle to such a person displays strength in character, values and morals.

As for Reito, it is a bit early to display all his "qualities" lol. Same for the other characters. I hope you enjoy the story as the chapters add up :)

** Etain Hawk:**

Lol, I found the cartoon villain thing to be true but my brain was not working well at that time. I've worked hard not to portrait him the same way in Chapter 3. As from Shizuru being a ball of fluff…hmm, I would disagree. She has been portrait as a crazy, masked, maniac too many times. I wanted people to focus on the fact that she has helped Natsuki a lot in the series, a lot of people tend to forget that gentler side of her but she will still be the strong Shizuru, do not worry,we'll have to wait for more chapters :)

** shezaei-neko:**

I am happy that it made your heart ache in a good way! I try hard in the important parts to bring out the feelings that are there into words. It is hard. Your reaction makes me feel like I'm doing it right. Thanks :)

** Leeyou:**

Lol. I'm happy and sad that you cried! Happy because it means I managed to portrait the feelings well enough and sad because I didn't want you to make you cry. But you know what, I cry at stories too! :'(

** Avadan232:**

I loved what you wrote. It is hard to get the personalities of the characters in this story. Everybody has their own definition for the main characters, for strength, for weakness so it is hard to grasp. To be able to really grasp it, everybody will have to really get the circumstances and feelings in the story. I'm not just taking Natsuki and Shizuru and planting them in a new story without changes in their characters. Their characters are based on what they have lived through in the story. Thanks for the kind words :)

** ZErO SuBsTaNce:**

Thanks for the review! I'm happy that you like the new outlook here. It's just an idea that jumped to me. I've been wanting to write an fanfic for ages but was not really getting a good idea! I'm happy you like this idea!

** NoName:**

Thank you for your review! Next chapter is up! It's too early to go into intimate relationship, they are not even good friends yet. I hope you'll stay for the whole of the ride!

** Sephiria:**

Je te remercie. Je suis contente que tu aimes la façon que j'ai présenté les personnages. Mon français n'ai pas si bon maintenant que je passe mon temps à parler seulement l'anglais ici en Australie. C'était très rafraichissant de lire ton review. Merci

** ZonaRose:**

Thank you for your review! Just wanted to say I love your stories too! \(^.^)/


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